Feeling his father's hand on his head, Shanshan said calmly, "Dad, I went to the bottom of the sea yesterday."
Although Charles didn't say anything, Winky could still hear her father's breathing quicken.
"005 said that the world below is where you lived, so I went to take a look, maybe I could help you teleport there, but I didn't go down in the end. The breath of Futan stopped me, just like the breath of 002 at the center of the earth. The deeper I went, the more panicked I felt."
Charles swallowed hard, "Don't go to the surface without permission. It's dangerous. You might die. Since the gods of Earthsea didn't go to the surface, there must be a reason."
Shanshan frowned slightly, "I know, I know. I just want to help you."
"Thank you. Remember to tell me what you are going to do next time."
Shanshan raised his right hand and knocked the hand off his head, "I'm not a child."
"How are you not? You are just four years old this year." Charles patted Shanshan's head and touched it again.
Shanshan pursed her lips but didn't say anything in the end.
Two tentacles stretched out from behind Shanshan, rolled up two sofas and pulled them behind them. "Sit down, we'll watch slowly."
The two of them sat on the sofa, silently watching the joys and sorrows of the little people behind the low wall, and no one spoke.
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"Captain? Are you asking about my wish? I'm not afraid that you will be angry, but my wish is to eliminate the last threat to Hope Island, Anna."
James, with a beer belly, spoke to Charles across the table with a serious expression.
Charles raised the raw oyster in his hand and poured sour lemon on it. He took a light sip and his mouth was immediately filled with the tender and juicy meat.
While chewing the food in his mouth, Charles shook the empty shell in his hand towards James, motioning him to sit down and eat together.
"Thank you, I'm not hungry."
Charles reached out and patted his belly. "Well, you really should lose weight. Exercise more often and don't stay in your room all day. Look at your big belly."
Seeing the captain's nonchalant attitude, James suddenly became anxious. "Captain, although she will be more restrained when you are on the island, it does not mean that the matter is over. She is always a hidden danger!"
"I know, but I'm not here for this. I just want to ask you, what is your personal wish?" Charles explained to him calmly.
James sighed deeply and sat down next to his captain. "Captain, do you still remember how embarrassed we were on the Mouse?"
"We didn't have the good life we have now. We earned it with our lives. If something goes wrong at Hope Island, I'm afraid we won't even have the chance to go back and continue sailing."
Charles chewed the food in his mouth for a few times and then swallowed it. "My chief engineer, your vision is too small. The current situation has far exceeded a small island of hope. Don't worry about Anna's matter. I will take care of it."
Looking at the slightly wriggling black tentacles on Charles' head, James felt helpless. "Okay, Captain, I'll listen to you. If possible, please stay on the island and at least maintain the current situation."
Charles smiled and continued to attack the food on the table. "The child in the car just now is your daughter, right? She's this big now?"
Charles nodded in agreement. "Yeah, my daughter is the same. She couldn't even speak clearly when we first met, but now she's arguing with me."
As fathers themselves, they finally had a common topic and they had a very enjoyable conversation.
"Captain, I really still remember that when I was on a ship mission on the Mouse, I accidentally fell into the water and there were two split-head sharks swimming beside me. It was you who jumped from the deck without hesitation to rescue me." Shaking the wine glass in his hand, James' face showed a hint of drunkenness.
"Before I boarded the Rat, I followed other ships, but no captain could do what you did. From that day on, I swore in my heart that I would follow you forever. Wherever you go, I will go."
Charles burped and shook his head. "I'm not as good as you think. I was very poor at the time. I just wanted to reduce my losses."
James shook his head vigorously to deny it. "Impossible! I have been following you on the ship for seven years!! Captain, you always like to hide your emotions! Sometimes you even deny it, but I know! You are the best captain in the world!"
Hearing this, the smile on Charles' face slowly faded.
After lunch, James will go back to work. Hope Island has reached its current size due to his contribution. Hope Island is very lively now, so he naturally has no time to rest.
Standing in front of the car, James held the door and looked at Charles who was standing on the steps at the entrance of the restaurant. "Captain, I can see that you are worried, but no matter what you want to do in the future, don't forget that you still have me, the chief engineer! I will always support you!"
Watching the back of the car gradually going away, Charles stood on tiptoe and continued walking along the busy street. He found other crew members and asked them about their wishes. Everyone's wishes were strange, but many of them were not that difficult to achieve.
Coming out of Linda's place, he saw a figure in a black dress with a slight limp in the distance.
"Grace?"
The figure trembled slightly and then turned around slowly. It was the girl Grace. She was holding a pile of books in her arms and her hair was let down to cover the torn half of her face.
"Captain." The girl bowed to Charles somewhat awkwardly.
"What are you doing on the island now?" Charles asked.
"As I told you, I am working for Lady Anna now."
"Are you still getting used to life on Hope Island?"
"Well, it's much better than the days when I was in my mentor's tower. I have a lot of money now. I even bought the library. All these books are mine now."
The bright smile that had disappeared from Grace's face reappeared, but this smile looked particularly hideous against the backdrop of the cracked right cheek.
Grace seemed to be afraid that her scars would scare others, so she wore a very conservative long dress.
"This is what you deserve. If you could have one wish fulfilled right now, what would you choose?" Charles asked her.
(End of this chapter)